Vranas named REALTOR® of the Year

REALTOR® John Vranas, owner of Vranas Ventures Inc., in Chicago has been named the 2013 Illinois REALTOR® of the Year for outstanding industry leadership and service.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 28, 2013

Contact: Jon Broadbooks, 217-529-2600

Vranas named Illinois REALTOR® of the Year foroutstanding industry leadership, service

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — REALTOR® John Vranas, owner of Vranas Ventures Inc., a property management company in Chicago, has been named the 2013 Illinois REALTOR® of the Year by the Illinois Association of REALTORS®.

The announcement was made Jan. 23 at the association’s Public Policy Meetings held at the Embassy Suites Hotel and Riverfront Conference Center in East Peoria, Ill. Vranas will be honored at an April 17 banquet at the Hilton Hotel in Springfield.

The REALTOR® of the Year award is presented to a member of the Illinois Association of REALTORS® who best exemplifies the professional qualities of a REALTOR®. The award recognizes leadership in the REALTOR® Association as well as service to civic, community and charitable causes.

“John is a devoted REALTOR® and leader who has spent much of his career giving back to improve the real estate industry and also his greater community,” said Michael D. Oldenettel, CRS, GRI, president of the Illinois Association of REALTORS®. “His commitment to political advocacy and furthering the REALTOR® cause has been felt at the local, state and national association levels.”

A graduate of Loyola University, Vranas began his real estate career in 1978 and earned his broker license in 1984. He earned the distinguished Certified Property Manager (CPM) designation from the Institute of Real Estate Management in 1989.

He has been actively involved in the Chicago Association of REALTORS® during his career and served as its president in 2003. In 2004, he was named Chicago REALTOR® of the Year. He has served with distinction on its Government Affairs and Property Management committees and the Education Foundation and currently serves on the Professional Standards Committee.

For the Illinois Association of REALTORS®, Vranas has held leadership roles as chair of the Public Policy and Governmental Affairs Member Involvement Group, the Owner/Tenant Task Force and the Audit Committee. He currently chairs the Bylaws Committee and serves on the Commercial/Industrial/Investment Committee among others.

A past chair of the REALTORS® Political Action Committee (RPAC) Trustees, he is recognized as a Major Investor for his RPAC contributions and in 2010 was inducted into the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) RPAC Hall of Fame.

Active nationally, Vranas serves on NAR’s Board of Directors and the Federal Taxation Committee, of which he is the immediate past chair. He also has lent his expertise to NAR’s Finance and Public Policy Coordinating committees along with the Public Advocacy Advisory Group and was the 2007 chair of the Real Property Operations Committee.

In 2006, Vranas received IAR’s Distinguished Service Award, which honors individuals who have made outstanding contributions and service to the Illinois Association of REALTORS® and their local communities.

Vranas is a longtime advocate for quality housing in the Chicagoland area and currently serves as president of the Chicago Alliance to End Homelessness. He also is president of Emergency Fund, which provides immediate flexible financial assistance to Chicago residents going through a crisis.

He is chairman of the Chicago Special Service Area #26 Board aimed at improving the Broadway commercial area in the Edgewater community and is the past recipient of the Quality Management Award from the Edgewater Community Council as well as three Good Neighbor Awards from the Chicago Association of REALTORS®.

A resident of Lincolnwood, Ill., Vranas has long played an active role in education in his local community. He was a board member and multiple-term school board president for Fairview School District #72 in the 1990s and currently serves as a board member of Lincolnwood School District #74.

The Illinois Association of REALTORS® is a voluntary trade association whose 41,000 members are engaged in all facets of the real estate industry. In addition to serving the professional needs of its members, the Illinois Association of REALTORS® works to protect the rights of private property owners in the state by recommending and promoting legislation that safeguards and advances the interest of real property ownership.